Learn how to make Chef John's famous Tortilla de Patatas with this easy-to-follow video tutorial! This traditional Spanish dish features layers of thinly sliced potatoes and onions, cooked until tender and golden, then combined with beaten eggs for a hearty and flavorful omelette. Follow along step by step as we guide you through the process, sharing tips and tricks to ensure your Tortilla de Patatas turns out perfectly every time. Enjoy a taste of Spain right in your own kitchen!
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00:00 Hello, this is Chef John from FoodWishes.com with Tortilla de Patatas.
00:08 That's right, I am very excited to be sharing my version of this Spanish classic.
00:12 And by my version, I actually mean Helen Rennie's version.
00:16 Which she did, saying she was channeling me.
00:19 Which means that I'm now channeling her, channeling me.
00:22 But anyway, this might have been the most delicious thing I made all year.
00:25 And to get started, let me show you how we're going to prep the potatoes and the onions.
00:29 And for this, I like to use Yukon Gold potatoes, which I think give you the perfect texture.
00:34 And we could, if we want, use one of these mandolin vegetable slicers to do the potatoes.
00:38 And I probably will after I do this first one.
00:41 But if we use a knife, what we'll do is cut a couple slices off the side, so our potato
00:45 sits nice and flat while we slice.
00:48 Which we will do across every eighth inch.
00:50 And while we do want to get these relatively uniform, if some slices are a little thicker
00:54 or thinner, no big deal.
00:56 We just want you to get them close.
00:59 And by the way, when you get down to the end, just turn that piece onto the flat side and
01:03 slice down.
01:04 All right, I was trying to show off, I think, going all the way to the end.
01:08 But that is certainly not worth cutting your finger for, so be careful.
01:12 But anyway, we'll slice up a couple pounds of potatoes just like that.
01:16 And then as far as slicing the onions go, we're going to want to do that against the
01:20 grain.
01:21 Okay, the fibers in an onion run this direction, from the root end to the top.
01:25 And if you slice an onion that way, the pieces tend to hold together.
01:29 Whereas if you turn it this way and slice across, those pieces will break down a lot
01:33 easier and pretty much melt into whatever you're cooking.
01:37 Which is what we want to have happen here.
01:40 So we'll do one whole yellow onion that way.
01:43 And then besides prepping our potatoes and our onion, we can also put together our egg
01:47 mixture, which is simply five whole eggs, to which we will add some salt, some freshly
01:52 ground black pepper, and of course a few shakes of cayenne.
01:57 And that's it.
01:58 We'll take a whisk and we will bust these eggs right in the yolks.
02:01 And then we will whisk this very, very thoroughly, until the yolks and whites are completely
02:06 mixed.
02:07 Okay, we do not, under any circumstances, want any visible egg white in our finished
02:11 tortilla.
02:12 Or if you serve me this and it has egg white visible, I'm going to lose it.
02:16 I mean not outwardly.
02:18 I will smile and say it's awesome.
02:20 But inside, I will be losing it.
02:23 And that's it.
02:24 Once we have everything prepped, we can head to the stove, where we will add a third of
02:27 a cup of olive oil to a large nonstick skillet.
02:30 And we will set our heat to medium high.
02:32 And then we'll transfer in our sliced onions and potatoes, along with a nice big pinch
02:37 of salt.
02:38 And then what we'll do for the next 15 minutes or so, is cook all this, tossing and stirring
02:42 occasionally, or until our potatoes get nice and tender and start breaking apart.
02:48 And also, and this part is optional, we've gotten some nice browning on both our potatoes
02:52 and onions.
02:53 And once we've given this a good initial mix, and everything is fairly evenly distributed,
02:58 we should probably go ahead and cover this, which is definitely going to help reduce the
03:01 cooking time.
03:02 And what I'll usually do is let it cook for two or three minutes, and then uncover it
03:07 and give it a toss.
03:09 And we'll repeat that process as many times as it takes, until our onions and potatoes
03:13 look and feel exactly how we want.
03:16 And by the way, I'm calling this the Helen Rennie method, which in her video she described
03:20 as the Chef John method.
03:21 And even though I never posted a video for this, she assumed I would do it this way,
03:26 and not use the traditional method, which involves basically deep frying all this potato
03:30 and onion in olive oil.
03:32 And then it's drained, and you can move on to the next step.
03:35 But that method is very messy, and uses a ton of oil.
03:39 And by the time you're done, this mixture is going to end up with the same amount of
03:42 oil that we started with here.
03:44 So what I'm trying to say is, she channeled me very, very accurately.
03:49 Since we both agree, you're going to end up with exactly the same final product, without
03:53 that deep frying and olive oil step.
03:56 But no matter what method you use, you cannot, you will not stop until the potatoes are fully
04:01 tender.
04:02 Right, once they're mixed with the egg, it's not going to cook long enough to really cook
04:05 the potatoes any further.
04:07 But they don't have to be browned.
04:09 Right, if you do an image search for this tortilla, you will see a huge range in color
04:14 from pretty much pure white, all the way to a very dark brown, borderline burned.
04:20 So as long as you get them tender, how far you take them past that to get the brownings
04:23 up to you.
04:24 I mean, you are after all the Helen Rennie, of when the potatoes and onions are ready.
04:30 But Helen and I are both huge fans of browning things.
04:32 Right, we just think that gives everything a deeper, more savory flavor.
04:36 So I personally do like to go for a lot of color.
04:39 But please know, you can stop at any point, once the potatoes are soft.
04:43 Okay, that really is the most important thing.
04:46 And this is what mine looked like when I decided they were just right.
04:50 And once we've decided those have gone long enough, we'll pull them off the heat and transfer
04:54 them into our bowl of eggs.
04:56 And we'll use a spatula to stir everything evenly together.
05:00 And then once that's done, you can cook this right away.
05:03 But most tortilla makers recommend covering this and letting it sit for about 5 or 10
05:08 minutes, which allows those hot potatoes to bring our eggs up to temp and give them a
05:12 little bit of a head start.
05:14 So that's exactly what I did.
05:16 And that's it, we can head back to the stove, where we have a smaller nonstick pan set over
05:20 medium-high heat.
05:23 And we will transfer everything in.
05:25 And then we'll smooth the top and make sure the sides are nice and neat.
05:29 And then what we'll do is cook that for about 4 minutes, or until the bottom is nicely browned
05:34 and the eggs are set enough so we can flip it.
05:37 And yes, I do like to use a cover for this step as well.
05:40 And by the way, the ideal pan size here is anywhere between 8 and 10 inches, I think.
05:46 If you use an 8 inch, you're going to have a taller, higher tortilla.
05:49 And if you use a 10 inch, it's going to be flatter, only about an inch high.
05:53 This one was just over 9 inches and worked out very well.
05:57 And yes, we are allowed to peek to see how dark it's getting.
06:01 And once things have firmed up and our bottom's nice and brown, we will proceed to the usually
06:05 terrifying flipping step, where we put a plate on top and flip everything over, and then
06:10 slide the tortilla back into the pan.
06:13 But let me show you a much safer, much easier method.
06:15 Okay, we're simply going to transfer the tortilla onto a plate like this.
06:19 And then we'll put another plate on top, and then flip the plates over, and then slide
06:24 our tortilla back into the pan.
06:26 And by the way, this is called the Gabby flipping method, which has been trademarked.
06:31 And if you know what I'm talking about, you watch way too much food YouTube.
06:36 And that's it.
06:37 Once you've cooked it, we simply have to cook this other side for about a minute or
06:40 two, depending on how soft you want your inside.
06:42 Right, personally I like mine fully cooked, whereas some tortilla makers want it literally
06:47 running like an undercooked omelet.
06:50 So this is something else you're going to have to decide.
06:53 And that's it once we've cooked that other side for a minute or two, or until it doesn't
06:56 feel soft and mushy anymore.
06:58 Unless of course you want it soft and mushy.
07:01 But anyway, once it feels right, we will pull it off the heat and transfer it onto a serving
07:06 plate.
07:07 And yes, I did remove that one unsightly crumb from the front, before I sliced in.
07:13 And like I said, I do like mine just cooked through, probably because I was raised eating
07:18 frittatas.
07:19 But like I said, a lot of people do like to leave the inside undercooked and kind of runny.
07:24 So if you're into that, feel free.
07:26 And then you can definitely eat this as is, and it would be magnificent.
07:30 But a very traditional condiment would be some nice garlicky aioli, which I'm going
07:35 to garnish with a little sprinkle of cayenne, plus a pinch of freshly chopped Italian parsley,
07:40 which fell on the plate where I didn't want it, so I had to clean that up for the pictures.
07:45 And after taking too many of those, I grabbed a fork and went in for the official taste.
07:50 And that my friends, like I said in the intro, was probably the most delicious thing I've
07:54 made so far this year.
07:56 And even though we cooked this until our eggs were fully set, it is still very soft and
08:01 moist and tender.
08:03 And as far as the taste goes, I think our decision to really brown those potatoes and
08:07 onions fairly well was a really, really good one.
08:10 And while that definitely does result in a darker appearance, I really do think that
08:14 makes for a tastier product.
08:16 OK, I think it's a touch sweeter and definitely more savory.
08:20 And of course, like all the world's great egg and potato dishes, this is amazing hot,
08:24 warm, room temp, and cold.
08:26 In fact, if you're ever stuck for an appetizer, make a few of these and then cut them into
08:31 like one inch squares, and then maybe apply a little touch of aioli to the tops, and then
08:35 stick a toothpick down into each one, and you will be serving what we call in the business
08:40 topless tapas.
08:42 Which are tapas that can't be topped.
08:44 But anyway, that's it.
08:46 My take on Helen Rennie's take on my take of Tortilla de Patatas.
08:52 No matter how much you brown your potatoes and onions, or how soft or firm you end up
08:56 cooking yours, this really is simple and easy to make, and only needs like five ingredients.
09:02 And it is without a doubt, one of the world's most delicious things to eat.
09:06 Which is why I really do hope you give this a try soon.
09:10 So please follow the links below for the ingredient amounts, a printable written recipe, and much
09:15 more info as usual.
09:18 And as always, enjoy!
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